A fleet of brandmobiles that resemble a hot dog on a bun, called "Wienermobiles", are used to promote and advertise Oscar Mayer products in the United States. The first Wienermobile was created by Oscar Mayer's nephew, Carl G. Mayer, in 1936. For a brief period in 2023, it was renamed the "Frankmobile", but following popular demand, the name was changed back to "Wienermobile."
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First version and debut
The initial 1936 vehicle—not yet termed a "Wienermobile" in publicity—weighed 2000 pounds and cost $5000 to fabricate. Its first public appearance was in Janesville, Wisconsin on October 16–17, 1936, having been completed in Chicago the previous day. Appearing with the new vehicle was Oscar Mayer's "World’s Smallest Chef"— "19 years old, 42 inches tall, and weighs 45 pounds". The identity of this first "Little Oscar" making promotional appearances is not known. Meinhardt Raabe took the position sometime after his mid-1937 hiring by Oscar Mayer, and held it until at least 1941.
The Wienermobile promotional name debuted only in 1951. In the 1936-41 years publicity for the vehicle was variously "Wiener Truck", "Oscar Mayer Truck", "German Wiener Sound Car", "World's Largest Wiener Car", and "Giant Wiener Sound Truck".
History
The Oscar Mayer Wienermobile has evolved from Carl Mayer's original 1936 vehicle to the vehicles seen on the road today. Although the first Wienermobile was scrapped for metal in the 1940s to aid the US Army during World War II, Oscar Mayer and the Gerstenslager Company created several new vehicles using a Dodge chassis or a Willys Jeep chassis in the 1950s. The 1952 model is on display at the Henry Ford Museum in Dearborn, Michigan. Beginning in the 1950s Wienermobiles were usually piloted by "Little Oscar" (portrayed by George Molchan) who would visit stores, schools, orphanages, and children's hospitals and participate in parades and festivals. Noted industrial designer Brooks Stevens is also credited with a "new look" 1950s design, taking advantages of the possibilities of modern molded fiberglass construction "to put the wiener in the bun" in 1958.
In 1988, Oscar Mayer had a fleet of six Wienermobiles built using converted Chevrolet van chassis; by 1995 all had accumulated more than 250,000 miles.
In 1995, a new version increased the size of the Wienermobile to a length of 27 feet (8.2 m) and a height of 11 feet (3.4 m).
In June 2017, the company introduced several new hot dog-themed vehicles, including the WienerCycle, WienerRover, and WienerDrone.
In May 2023, Oscar Mayer announced that it was renaming the Wienermobile the Frankmobile, to promote a new recipe for its all-beef franks. It was suggested that the name change would not be permanent. The name was changed back in September 2023.
Wienie 500
During festivities on Carb Day at the Indianapolis 500 in 2025 and 2026, all six Wienermobiles have taken part in the Wienie 500. The event is a two-lap, 5 miles (8.0 km) race around the Indianapolis Motor Speedway oval. The winner in 2025 was "Slaw Dog" and the winner in 2026 was "New York Dog".
List of Wienermobiles
Source: Oscar Mayer
Wienermobile drivers
Six Wienermobiles operate throughout the United States.
The driver of a Wienermobile is called The Hotdogger. The Hotdogger's job is to "meat" and greet people around the country. The duties of a Hotdogger include: "...sharing photos and videos on social media, answering questions about the brand and the vehicle (the most frequently asked question is if there's a bathroom in the back, to which they respond: 'No, it's not a Weenie-bago'), and distributing swag."
Only college seniors who are about to graduate are eligible to be Hotdoggers. Applicants should be getting their BA or BS, preferably in public relations, journalism, communications, advertising, or marketing. A Hotdogger's assignment is for one year only. Recruiting for each year's new Hotdogger cadre involves current Hotdoggers and Oscar Mayer recruiters visiting college campuses across the country. In 2018, 7,000 people applied to be Hotdoggers. As each Wienermobile carries two Hotdoggers, only 12 Hotdoggers are selected each year. Former US House Speaker Paul Ryan was a Hotdogger while in college.
Notable incidents
On July 5, 1973, an abandoned Wienermobile was recovered by Seattle police about ten miles from the city's Oscar Mayer facility, where it had been stolen.
On June 18, 2002, a Virginia trooper--whose job was "to stop large vehicles that might be carrying terrorist explosives" near the Pentagon--halted the touring Wienermobile and "directed it to an exit that would allow the vehicle to bypass the Pentagon."
In June 2007, a Wienermobile with the Wisconsin vanity license plate of YUMMY made headlines after being stopped by an Arizona Department of Public Safety officer for having an allegedly stolen license plate. The officer had observed the Wienermobile slowing traffic and checked the license plate to determine if the vehicle was street legal. The license plate came back as being stolen from Columbia, Missouri, so the officer stopped the Wienermobile and detained the driver. Oscar Mayer had not notified police that the company had obtained a duplicate replacement plate after the previous one was stolen, and that it should be considered stolen only if not on a Wienermobile. The Wienermobile was released soon after the error was discovered.
On July 22, 2024, a Wienermobile was hit by a car while driving on Interstate 294 near Oak Brook, Illinois and flipped on its side when the driver lost control. No injuries were reported, though the vehicle itself had visible damage.